8. If you determine that there is not sufficient wear to warrant replacement of the piston, check the rings for freeness in the ring lands. If they are free, you must now carefully check them for wear. Remove them from the piston one at a time, being careful not to mix them up. You may even want to mark them "top" and "bottom". It is also very important to mark each ring so that when and if you put it back on the piston it will have the same edge facing upward. Failure to do either of these things will result in accelerated ring wear and a loss of power.

FIG. 66

9. Clean the rings thoroughly and place one of them inside the cylinder, approximately 1/2 inch down from the top of the liner (Fig. 66). Take the piston and insert it into the cylinder upside down until the top of the piston hits the ring (Fig. 67). Then push the piston down another 1/2 inch. This will make sure the ring is set squarely inside the cylinder. Remove the piston and measure the width of the gap at the

FIG. 67

ends of the rings as shown in Fig. 68. This distance should be from .075" to .085." Reinstall the piston and push the ring halfway down into the cylinder. Remove the piston and measure the end gap again.

FIG. 68
 
 

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